G.W. Abrams
G.W. Abrams was born in Rochester, N.Y., in 1850, and was married in 1878 to Jennie N. Olin, daughter of Philip and Maria Olin, of Perry. Mr. Abrams is a farmer. His father, Joseph Abrams, was born in Massachusetts, in 1808. After living for a time in Genesee county he removed with his family to Perry in 1840, and after working at the carpenter’s trade purchased the farm where the family now live about fifteen years ago. His wife, Diana Hotchkiss, whome he married in 1885, was a daughter of Ira Hotchkiss, a native of Vermont, who moved to Gainesville, and from there to Warsaw, where he died. Mr. Abram’s brother, William Abrams, served in the late war in the 9th N.Y. cavalry and the 9th Michigan volunteers. He was in the battle of Bull Run, and other engagements. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
Asaph Adams
Asaph Adams was born in Pike, May 17th, 1821, and was married September 27th, 1843, to Sarah Ann Smith, whose father, James Smith, was of Dutch descent, and was a farmer of Hume, Allegany county, where he died in September, 1861. He has been a shoemaker for many years; has served as village trustee, and held school offices, and is, as is also his wife, a member of the Presbyterian church. His son, George S. Adams, enlisted as bugler in Company C, 104th N.Y. volunteer infantry; took part in the second battle of Bull Run, in the battle of Antietam and other engagements and was discharged in December, 1862. Abner Adams, father of Asaph, was born in Pittstown, Rensselaer county, in 1794. He was of English descent, and of the John Quincy stock. He learned the trade of tanner and currier, and came to Pike in 1815, bringing his portable valuables in a knapsack on his back. In 1818 he opened a shoe shop, and became the pioneer shoemaker in the village. During the same year he married Lucinda, daughter of Fuller Hubbard, a pioneer and farmer of Hume, Allegany county, who died November 16th, 1878. In time he became a prosperous and influential citizen, and held the offices of justice of the peace, county superintendent of poor, and others of responsibility. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
Jerome Allen
Jerome Allen, son of Earl and Eunice Allen, was born in Pavilion, Genesee county, in 1832. January 1st, 1855, he married Cornelia A., daughter of Lemuel Cornish, of Covington. He is a carpenter and joiner and contractor and builder, and has been a resident of Perry since 1863, when he removed from Le Roy, Genesee county. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
Thomas J. Alton
Thomas J. Alton was born in Covington, in 1836, and married Sarah T. Cronkhite, daughter of John and Eunice W. Cronkhite, in 1858. Mrs. Alton was also born in 1836. Mr. Alton is a farmer. He has served the town as constable and collector. John Cronkhite was born in Argyle, Washington county, in 1794. He came to Perry, after living in various localities, and was a resident of the town until his death, in 1877. He was married in 1825 to Eunice Wigans, of Stillwater, Saratoga county, who is still living. He was a member of the Congregational church, with which Mrs. Cronkhite and Mr. and Mrs. Alton are identified. For some years Mr. Cronkhite served his town as assessor and commissioner of highways. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
David Andrus
David Andrus, son of David and Mary Andrus, was born in Shaftsbury, Vt., in 1825, and removed to western New York with his parents in 1834 and located in Castile. He spent several years in Virginia and California, and returned to Castile in 1863. From Castile he removed to Perry in 1865. He was married in 1854 to Miss Harriet A. Palmer, daughter of Alton and Harriet Palmer, who died in 1865. In 1866 he married her sister, Martha Jane Palmer. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
Martin Andrus
Martin Andrus, brother of David Andrus, was born in Shaftsbury, Vt., in 1812, and married Clarinda Huntington, of Castile, in 1830. His father, who is mentioned above as a settler in Castile in 1834, died at the residence of Martin Andrus, in Perry village, in 1861, at the age of eighty-two. The latter has been a resident of Perry since 1832. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
Mark Andrews
Mark Andrews was born in Turner, Maine, in 1786, and came to Perry in 1816, having just married Dolly McIntyre at Augusta, Maine. They settled on one hundred and twenty acres of partially improved land west of Perry Center, and Mr. Andrews was a resident of the town until his death, May 19th, 1856. Martin P. Andrews, his son, was born in Perry, August 17th, 1817. November 8th, 1848, he married Mary Hunt, daughter of Elijah and Eunice Hunt, who died July 31st, 1865. March 21st, 1867, he married Mrs. Diana Norton, widow of Isaac Norton, of Livingston county. Paris Andrews, son of Martin P. Andrews, was born in Perry in February, 1845, and married Lydia, daughter of Alfred and Abigail Abell, of Perry, March 21st, 1867. They have one child. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
Fred D. Aplin
FRED D. APLIN, editor and part owner of the "Ransom County Gazette," has ably conducted the various departments of that paper, and has built for himself an enviable reputation as an editor, and a large patronage for his paper. He is also connected with other financial enterprises and is one of the substantial men of the county. He has made his home in Lisbon for the past fifteen years and is well known as an excellent business man and true citizen. Mr. Aplin was born in Perry, Wyoming county, New York, May 5, 1858, and was the youngest in a family of five children born to Abner P. and Eliza C. (Meltcher) Aplin. When about fourteen years of age he began working in a printing office, and when sixteen years of age went to Caro, Michigan, to complete his trade. He remained in that state seven years, during which time he was part owner of the "Advertiser." On his way to Montana, where relatives of Mrs. Aplin were living, our subject stopped in Lisbon, In October, 1884, and there formed a partnership with H. S. Harcourt, the original newspaper man of Lisbon, publishing the "Dakota Herald." The "Dakota Herald" and "Dakota Clipper" were consolidated in January, 1886, and the "Ransom County Gazette" was established under the control of our subject and W. S. Buckley. The present partnership with E. S. Kilbourne was formed in August, 1892. The paper is a Republican sheet and stands firmly for the principles of that party. Aside from his newspaper interests Mr. Aplin is a director of the State Bank and director of the Lisbon Building & Loan Association at Lisbon. Our subject was married, in January, 1883, to Miss Luella E. Cooper, a native of Michigan. Two children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Aplin, as follows: Louis and Harold. Mr. Aplin is prominent in secret society circles and is a past master of Sheyenne Valley Lodge, No. 12, A. F. & A. M.; high priest of Lisbon Chapter, No.7, R. A. M.; T. I. M. of Tyrian Council; prelate of Ivanhoe Commandery, No. 8, Knights Templar; R. E. grand king of Grand Chapter of North Dakota; past V. M. of Lisbon Lodge of Perfection, No. 4, and a member of the Scottish Rites and York Rites. He has served as a member of the local school board for two terms and in 1898 was elected mayor of the city of Lisbon. [Source: Compendium of History and Biography of North Dakota, Publ. 1900. Transcribed by Syndi Phillips]
Sanford Armstrong
Sanford Armstrong was born in Connecticut, in 1788, and was married October 5th, 1849, to Marilda, daughter of John and Sophia Wilcox, of Warsaw. Mr. Armstrong was a resident of Perry from 1815 until his death, May 13th, 1866. He held the office of justice of the peace. His son, Sanford Armstrong, was born in July, 1851, and was married in March, 1873, to Emma C., daughter of Ebenezer and Corinda Burt, of Perry, by whom he has three children – Gertie, born August 26th, 1875; Florence, born November 13th, 1876; and Burt, born August 20th, 1879. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
Nelson Arnold
Nelson Arnold was born in Berlin, Renssalaer county, February 8th, 1809, and was married December 25th, 1834, to Polly, daughter of Nathaniel Baker, deceased. Mr. Arnold, who is now a retired farmer, came with his father, James Arnold, from Renssalaer county to Sheldon in 1812, where the latter was for many years a leading farmer. In 1855 he removed to Pike, where he has since lived. His son, Nathaniel, served in the late war. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
Aaron Axtell
Aaron Axtell was born in Grafton, Vt., in 1807; came to Pike in 1822, and to Perry in 1834; was married to Sara Maria Canfield, of Pike, in 1835, and died in 1877. He was a member of the Baptist church, as is his widow, who lives with her daughter, Mrs. M.A. Ward, milliner, at Perry village. His son, Abner Axtell, enlisted in Company H of the Cameron dragoons in 1861, and died of smallpox at Georgetown in 1862. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
Abishay G. Bacon
Abishay G. Bacon was born at Mt. Morris, in 1823, and came to Perry with his parents in childhood. In 1856 he married Charlotte M. Macomber. His father, Noah bacon, was born in Massachusetts, in 1793. In 1808 he accompanied his parents to Windham county, Conn. In 1816 he came to Perry and took up one hundred and thirty-six acres of lot 45, and after six or seven years removed to Mt. Morris, where he engaged in distilling until 1827, when he returned to Perry and purchased the farm where he now resides with his son. He married Anna Dickerson, of Perry, in 1821. She died in 1869. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
Hon. Calvin P. Bailey
Hon. Calvin P. Bailey, son of Charles and Martha Bailey, was born in Newbury, Vt., in 1792. In 1814 he married Sybil, daughter of John and Waitsell Hatch, of Hardwick, Vt. They had eight children, of whom five are living. Mr. Bailey came to Perry in 1816, bringing his family and a stock of goods, with which, in partnership with his brother-in-law, Samuel Hatch, he opened a store on the site of the store of Hatch & Cole, at the corner of Main and Covington streets, in Perry village. Bailey & Hatch soon after engaged in the manufacture of linseed oil. Later they purchased a grist-mill which had been built by one Bailey, of LeRoy, Genesee county, about 1826. Mr. Bailey continued in mercantile and general business until his retirement from active pursuits. In 1828 he was elected to represent his district in the Assembly, and in 1840 he was chosen a delegate to the national convention which placed the name of William Henry Harrison in nomination for the Presidency; on which occasion Mr. Bailey proposed the name of Henry Clay for the nomination, but was defeated by the friends of Harrison. Mr. Bailey died at his residence in Perry September 8th, 1860. He wife died in 1872. She was a Presbyterian. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
William R. Bathrick
William R. Bathrick was born in Perry in 1842, and married Mancie C., daughter of Andrew Pratt, in 1862. Mr. and Mrs. Bathrick are members of the Congregational church. He is a farmer and owns one hundred and six acres. Mr. Bathrick’s father was born in Litchfield, Herkimer county, came to Perry at the age of twenty-four, and died in 1877. His wife was Clarissa Ward. They were Congregationalists. His grandfather served in the Revolutionary war. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
Charles J. Benedict
Charles J. Benedict was born in Perry, March 20th, 1823, and was married in 1850 to Florilla Hurd, daughter of Samuel and Orilla Canfield. They have three children – Frank C., born in 1851; Harriet E., born in 1856, and Frederick Graham, born in 1858. Mr. Benedict has been highway commissioner three years. During the war, unable to go to the front, he furnished a substitute. His father, Graham benedict, whose ancestors came from England, was born in Woodbury, Conn., in 1785; married Luia Hicks in 1814; settled in Perry, where he cleared land and lived in a log cabin, in 1814; and died January 18th, 1862. He was a member of the Episcopal church. Mrs. Benedict’s father, Samuel Canfield, was born in Arlington, Vt., in 1786, and was married in 1827 to Aurelia, daughter of Albert and Salome Canfield. His father died at seventy-six, and his mother at seventy-nine. She died in 1870. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
Milton E. Benedict
Milton E. Benedict was born in Pavilion, Genesee county, in 1826. He removed to Covington in 1834, to Castile in 1862, and to Perry in 1867, where he purchased an interest in the Perry Iron Works, which were operated seven years by Benedict & Co. In 1875 the establishment was sold to M.H. Olin, and Mr. Benedict became and continues to be the foreman in the shops of Wyckoff, Tuttle & Olin. He married Emma, daughter of Richard and Mary Gray, of Castile, in 1862. Mrs. Benedict is a member of the Methodist church. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
R. Walter Benedict
R. Walter Benedict was born in Covington, November 25th, 1836, and came to Perry in 1861, and the next year bought the farm on which he lives. November 24th, 1865, he married Miranda Batchelor, of Perry. Mr. Benedict was educated at the common schools, at Genesee College, Lima, and at Bryant & Stratton’s Commercial College, Poughkeepsie, and was in the west for a time, engaged as civil engineer. His father, Gershom, son of Elijah and Lois Benedict, was born in Norfolk, Conn., in 1805; he came to western New York at an early age, and in 1881 he was ordained a minister of the Methodist Episcopal church. He has preached in many places in the Genesee Conference. He came to Wyoming county in 1850. He married Eliza Kendall in 1838, and now lives in Perry. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
William Benedict
William Benedict was born in Perry, in 1827. He is now a farmer. For three and a half years he was manager of a union store at Perry Center, and for two years he conducted a store of his own. He was married to Cynthia L. Buell in 1856, and in 1859 to Dorleske Andrews, daughter to Reuben and Mary Copeland. He has three children – Esther Ann, born in 1861; Edith, born in 1863, and Charles Sumner, born in 1869. Mrs. Benedict and her oldest daughter are members of the Universalist church. His father, Hon. Truman Benedict, was born in Manchester, Vt., in 1793, moved to Perry in 1822, and died in 1855. He was member of Assembly two terms, and served as supervisor, assessor and justice of the peace. He was an Episcopalian by choice, but belonged to no church organization. He contributed liberally toward the erection of the churches in Perry. Mrs. Benedict’s father, Reuben Andrews, was born in Connecticut in 1775, and married Elizabeth Thompson in 1800, and Mary Copeland in 1825. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
Edwin J. Bill
Edwin J. Bill, a retired farmer and ex-soldier of the Civil war, has lived in Jefferson county, Nebraska, for the past fifteen years. He has passed the seventy-fifth milestone on his life’s journey, and has devoted his best efforts and greater part of his years to useful work, so that he deservedly enjoys the esteem and high regard of him many friends throughout the country. Mr. Bill was born in that part of Genesee county afterward known as Wyoming county, New York, on May 30, 1828, of a family whose strong traits were honest individuality and moral character. His grandfather gave seven years’ service in the Revolutionary war so that the present descendants might have membership in the Sons and Daughters of the American Revolution. Joseph Bill, the father of Edwin J. Bill was a blacksmith in New York, and a strong Whig and Republican in politics. He married Esther Tracy, who was born in Mohawk Flats, New York, of an old family of that state. He lived to be eighty-four years old, and his only child was Edwin J. Bill. Mr. Bill was reared on a farm near Jamestown, Chautauqua county, New York, and in 1855 went to Grant county, Wisconsin, near Boscobel, where he lived until the war came on. In July 1861, at Lincoln’s call for thirty thousand troops, he enlisted at that place in Company H, Seventh Wisconsin Infantry, under Captain Mark Finacam. He was sent to Virginia, and took part in the second battle of Bull Run, at Antietam, was wounded in the breast and leg at Gaines Mill, carrying a bullet in his breast for six weeks. He belonged to General McDowell’s corps. He received his honorable discharge in February, General Sheridan’s gallant troopers, and was with that famous leader in the Shenandoah valley, at Winchester, when Sheridan made his famous ride, at Fisher’s Hill, at Stone River, and many other engagements of the war. He received his honorable discharge in Virginia in 1865, and returned home after a most creditable army record. He was regimental orderly most of the time he was with the Ninth New York, and had many hairbreadth escapes.
After the war he returned to Wisconsin, was in Minnesota for a year, was in Sauk county, Wisconsin, for six years, and in 1872 went to Ottawa county, Kansas, locating near Minneapolis, where he was successfully engaged in farming until 1888. He took up his residence in Jefferson county, Nebraska, in 1888, and has lived on one farm since that time.
Mr. Bill was married in Randolph, New York, while he was home on his veteran’s furlough in 1863, to Miss Amanda Emery, who has been his faithful and constant companion for forty years, and they share equally in the honor of their accomplishments in life. She was born in Chautauqua county, New York, a daughter of Noah and Irene (Morgan) Emery, who lived and died in New York state, having been the parents of thirteen children, three sons and ten daughters; one of the sons was major in the Ninth New York Cavalry, and was killed at Meadow Brook, before Richmond. Mr. and Mrs. Bill have no children, but have adopted a daughter, Elma Phillips, whom they reared and educated as their own, and she now lives at Aurora, Brookings county, South Dakota. Mr. Bill is a dyed-in-the-wood Republican, and in politics as well as in moral questions has strong convictions as to the right and wrong. He is a member of the Congregational church. He is a well informed citizen, taking much interest in matters affecting the public qualities. [Source: "A Biographical and Genealogical History Of Southeastern Nebraska", Vol. II. Publ. 1904. Transcribed by Richard Ramos]
Rachel Birdsall
Rachel Birdsall, widow of James Birdsall, was born in Essex county, N.J., in 1811, and was married in 1831. She has been a resident of Perry since November 15th, 1888, and she and her husband have been identified with the Baptist church. Her father, John Meeker Littell, and her mother, Catharine Bedell, were natives of New Jersey. Her husband was a native of Connecticut. He was born in 1797 and died in 1867. His parents were James and Sarah Birdsall. He removed to ulster county, afterward lived in New York, and came from there to Perry and bought the farm of one-hundred and seventeen acres on which his widow lives. Mr. and Mrs. Birdsall had seven children, three of whom are living. Their son, Hiram L. Birdsall, was a member of the 130th regiment N.Y. cavalry, and participated with the regiment in all its engagements, having three horses shot under him. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
Luther B. Bliss
Luther B. Bliss was born in Scipio, Cayuga county, in 1830, and came to Perry in 1888. In 1854 he was married to Elizabeth Coleby. His is a cooper and farmer and has served as constable. His father, Dillon Bliss, was born in Connecticut, in 1801, and in 1827 married Clarissa Bryan, whose parents were Luther and Rhoda Ticknor. They had three children, Rhoda, Luther and Clarissa, all of whom are living. They were members of the Baptist church. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
H. Blodget
H. Blodget, banker, was born in Gainesville, September 9th, 1817. September 9th, 1844, he married Angeline Bush, of Pike. He has served as justice of the peace and president of the board of village trustees, and is now (1879) corporation treasurer. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
John C. Blythe
John C., son of James and Elizabeth Blythe, was born in Yorkshire, England, in 1838. He came to America in 1840, and Perry in 1850, from Cuylerville, Livingston county. His is a miller. About 1856 he was married to Miss Adeline Marsh, of Cuylerville, and in 1870 to Miss Ella Grisewood, of Castile. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
Albert G. Borden
Albert G., son of Samuel and Hannah Borden, was born in Fall River, Mass., in 1817. In 1838 he married Miss Abbey Garner, of Milan, Cayuga county, by whom he had seven children, four of whom are living. In 1866 he married Caroline Simmons, whose parents came from Oneida county to Castile in 1837, by whom he has four children. Mr. Borden removed from Cayuga county to Warsaw in 1841, and to Perry in 1843. He is a carpenter and joiner, and has held the office of street commissioner two years. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
Edmund G.E. Bragdon
Edmund G.E. Bragdon was born in Manilus Center, Onondaga county, September 13th, 18--. In 1867 he married Louie Sherman, whose father, Andrew Sherman, was an early resident and well-known boat builder at Lockport, N.Y., where he died in 1870. In 1866 Mr. Bragdon removed from Lockport to Suspension Bridge, N.Y., and later to Buffalo, where for two years he was engaged at his trade of cooper. From Buffalo he came to Pike village in 1872, where he is employed at his trade and in selling the new Home sewing machine. He enlisted April 27th, 1861, as a private in Company F, 28th N.Y. infantry. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
Horace A. Brigham
Horace A. Brigham was born in Madison county, in 1817, and came from Leicester, Livingston county, to Perry in 1853. He is a farmer. In 1845 he married Julia Perry, who died in 1870, and in 1872 he married Cora Haskins. Mr. and Mrs. Brigham, and Mrs. Brigham deceased, have been prominent in the Baptist church. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
Randall W. Brigham
Randall W. Brigham, son of J.H. and Elizabeth Brigham, was born in Perry, July 4th, 1826, and was married November 5th, 1851, to Annette, daughter of Edward and Sarah Richards, of Perry. They have two children. Mr. Brigham, who is a farmer, has held the office of highway commissioner nine years, was supervisor in 1871-72, and has served as railroad commissioner. His father, J.H. Brigham, was born May 28th, 1791, at New Marlboro, Mass. He located in Perry, on lot 30, about 1816. He was married September 25th, 1811, to Elizabeth, daughter of Solomon and Jerusha Hart, of New Marlboro, Mass. They have had seven children, four of whom are living. Mr. Brigham died in September, 1887. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
Sullivan Burt
Sullivan, son of Alpheus Burt, was born in Huntington, Vt., in 1797, and came to Perry in 1818. In 1823 he married Hannah Lacy, daughter of Elnathan and Nancy Lacy, of Perry. They had two children, both of whom are now dead. Mrs. Burt died November 30th, 1876, at the age of seventy-five. Mr. Burt has been a lifelong farmer. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
John M. Butler
John M. Butler, farmer, was born in Perry, in 1821, and married Clarinda M., daughter of Norman and Selina White, in 1845. They have had five children, four of whom are living. Milton W., born in 1850; Henry C., born in 1853; Laura S., born in 1856; and Elveretta, born in 1861. Mr. and Mrs. Butler are members of the Congregational church, of which the former has been deacon for some years. Mr. Butler has been the principal surveyor in his section for forty years, and has the instruments he has used during that time. He has taught district school four successive winters. Mrs. Butler has taught two summers. William Butler, father of John M. Butler, was born at Clinton, Oneida county, in 1798, and married Laura Curtis of that place. He purchased his farm in 1814, and worked at the clothiers’ trade until 1817 in order to pay for it, as he would not go into debt. In 1817 he settled on it. He cleared the land himself, and erected a log house. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
William T. Buttre
William T. Buttre, son of William and Mary Buttre, was born in New York city, in 1806, and was married about 1827 to Miss Mary Parsons, of Auburn, N.Y., by whom he had five children, only one of whom is living. Mrs. Buttre died in 1840, and in 1842 Mr. Buttre married Miss Lorain B. Dutcher, of Auburn. Mr. Buttre came to Perry from Auburn in 1841. He is a cabinet maker and dealer in furniture. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
Phebe C. Cate
Phebe C. Cate was born in Middlebury, in 1832, and was married in 1853. She has three children, Clarence, born in 1856; Clara M., 1859, and Annie E., 1860. All three are graduates of Middlebury Academy, and the two daughters are school teachers. Mrs. Cate and her children are all members of the LeGrange Baptist church. Her husband, Virgil H. Cate, was born in Rockingham, N.H., in 1833. In 1861 he enlisted in the 7th New Hampshire volunteers, and held the office of first lieutenant, participating in all of the battles in which his regiment was engaged, until taken prisoner and held four months. He was the officer who has refused an exchange by an official order issued by Jefferson Davis, who threatened to hand him over to the local authorities for trial and punishment for the alleged incitement of negroes to insurrection. After his release he was killed in the battle of Fort Wagner, South Carolina. This was the first engagement in which negro troops participated, and on this occasion the rebels manifested a greater degree of ferocity than is usually witnessed in civilized warfare. Mr. Cate’s father, Joseph Cate, married Elizabeth Burbank, a member of a family occupying a high social position in New Hampshire. Mrs. Cate’s father was Avery H. Cronkhite, who was born in Rensselaer county in 1804, and married Mathilda Baldwin, of that county, by whom he had eight children, Mrs. Cate being the oldest. Six are living. Mr. Cronkhite was a supervisor in Middlebury before and after the division of the county. Mrs. Cate has been a resident of Perry since 18??. (illegible) [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
Lewis E. Chapin
Lewis E. Chapin was born in Livonia, Livingston county, March 3d, 1855, and came to Perry, where he is publisher of the Wyoming County Herald, from Livonia in June, 1877. [Source: History of Wyoming Co., New York, F.W. Beers & Co., Copyright 1880]
Theodore Frelinghuysen Chapin
THEODORE FEELINGHUTSEN CHAPIN was born in Middlebury, Wyoming County, New York, May 31, 1844, his parents being William J. and Adaline M. (Bradley) Chapin, the family being of English Puritan descent. His father being a farmer, he had as boy the usual work and chores of a country boy, and this discipline was later of value in assisting him to work his way through college. The father was a clean Christian gentleman, of good judgment and strict honesty, and his mother's influence was particularly felt in his mental and spiritual development. Up to the age of fourteen, he attended the district school, which of the usual country type. Even as a boy, he had a great liking for reading, his preference, however, being for history, and particularly biography, to the exclusion of fables and fairy tales. Later, with the period of adolescence, a taste for fiction developed. Growing up in the country, nature and scenery affected him strongly. He attended Middlebury Academy, Wyoming, New York, 1860-1864. In April 1865, he enlisted in the First New York Dragoons, but was honorably discharged in June of the same year. In 1866 he entered the University of Rochester, graduating in 1870 with his A.B. degree, his alma mater later conferring on him the honorary degree of A.M. His college years were a period of hard, earnest work, as the young man was obliged to make his way through by his own efforts. His ambition had been to take up the study of medicine, but circ*mstances preventing its realization at the time, he began the career as a teacher, which was to be his life work. His first position was that of principal of Satterlee Institute, Rochester, New York (1870-1871). The next year he was principal of Painted Post, New York Union School, then of the Albion, New York, Academy (1872-1874); and then instructor in Greek and natural sciences at Cook Academy, Montour Falls, New York (1875-1879). He was then able to spend a year in study abroad, attending the Polytechnicum of Munich, Germany, where he specialized in chemistry.
Returning home, he was principal of Ward School, No. 5, Elmira, New York (1880-1882), and of Ten Broeck Free Academy, Franklinville, New York (1882-1887), and instructor in Greek and German in the Reading, Pennsylvania, High School (1887-1888). While there, he received the call to the Lyman School, which opened an opportunity for service which he was unable to resist. The Westboro institution had been a State reformatory, or virtually a prison for young offenders, and had been carried on as a prison rather than a school. In 1884, the Massachusetts reformatory at Concord was opened, and the age for commitment to the Westboro school reduced to fifteen years. The old building was given up and a new location selected, on a fine hillside where open houses and playgrounds were provided for all the grades of boys. Efforts were made to interest the boys in the learning of trades, in addition to work on the farm and in their gardens, but for some reason the mechanical instructors failed to secure the interest of the boys, and the results had been disappointing. When Mr. Chapin took hold, he was already familiar with the best methods of the time for instruction in manual training. A fund donated by Theodore Lyman making the experiment possible. When its success had won for it a place in the regular school training, the field was broadened, and additional work-rooms and more instructors provided. In the face of unintelligent criticism, Mr. Chapin held to the ideas which were to prove so successful. Realizing the benefit to boys of athletic sports and exercises, he labored to have them given proper opportunity. While in a school of the character of the Lyman School, to which wayward boys are committed by the State, strict discipline is a primal necessity. He placed his reliance rather upon the personal influence of the teacher.
The records have shown that seventy-five per cent, of the boys turned out from the Lyman School have become earnest, useful men and citizens, including in their ranks successful, professional men, teachers, and manual training instructors. The good results of the system can therefore scarcely be denied.
In 1907, after eighteen years' continuous service, Mr. Chapin decided to retire. As an expression of opinion as to the value of Mr. Chapin's work at Westboro, the following was said by one of the trustees of the school: "The Lyman School is one of the best of its kind in the world, and it will stand as a monument to the industry, the constructive ability and the unselfish devotion of Superintendent Chapin. The school is his school. His name will always be associated with it by those who have worked there with him, while boys whom it has sent forth to be better members of society will remember Mr. Chapin as their best friend and as one whose exemplary life commands their respect and is worthy of their imitation."
In 1908, the State of New York decided to establish a new training school for boys, and Mr. Chapin's assistance was sought in the capacity of expert adviser, which position he held until 1912.
Mr. Chapin has adhered to the Republican party, while not active in politics. His study of political economy, however, has led him to believe in free trade as a principle, and on this issue he differs from the platform of his party. He is a member of the Baptist Church.
His favorite diversions, out-of-doors, are bicycling and lawn-tennis. He is a member of the Delta Upsilon and Phi Beta Kappa Fraternities.
He modestly says of himself: "I am simply a plain plodder, who has made the most of moderate abilities, a sound body and very mediocre opportunities for an education. I have always found doors of opportunity for service standing open, and have been fortunate enough after entering to render such service as I was capable of." The points which he emphasizes as of value to young people in the aim toward true success are contact with men of large mold and large ideals, intimate acquaintance with biography of men who have achieved and the history of our country; begin observing and recording observation as early as possible, training thereby as largely as possible the senses. Cast observation in language; practice telling things so people will listen; acquire the habit of rapid reading. Mr. Chapin was married on October 26, 1870, to Maria A. Bacon, daughter of William and Julia (Burrows) Bacon, the Bacons being a Connecticut family. Of their three children none are now living. [Source: Biographical History of Massachusetts, Biographies and Autobiographies of the Leading Men in the State, volume VI; by Rev. Paul Revere Frothingham, Massachusetts Biographical Society, Boston, Massachusetts, 1916]
George M. Condon
CONDON, George Melvin, lawyer; born, Fort Covington, N. Y., (Wyoming Co) Dec. 27, 1867; son of John and Marguerite (Kavanaugh) Condon; graduate Fort Covington High School and Academy; Detroit College of Law, 1899-1902, degree, LL.B.; married at Fort Covington, Sept 3, 1884, Nellie L. W. Mears. Reared on farm in Bombay, Franklin Co., N. Y., taught school for 4 years and worked in general store for 4 years; started in grocery business at Atlanta, Ga., but sold out at end of a year and came north to Charlotte, Mich., and entered business with the late A. T. Mears; sold out at end of a year and took position on Detroit Tribune; resigned after about a year and entered employ of Moran, Fitzsimons & Co., wholesale grocers; resigned after 4 years and became connected with confidential service of the Standard Oil Co., acting as credit man, etc., in which continued for 15 years. Has engaged in practice of law in Detroit since June, 1902. Member Detroit Bar Association. Republican; twice a candidate State Legislature. Presbyterian. Clubs: Condon Senior and Junior Literary Clubs (Director). Recreation: Literature. Office: 74 Home Bank Bldg. Residence: 597 W. Grand Blvd. [Source: "The Book of Detroiters". Edited by Albert Nelson Marquis, 1908 - Submitted by Christine Walters]
A. K. Doolittle
A. K. Doolittle, section 10, Cass Township, was born in Washington County, New York, February 15, 1823, a son of Ambrose and Esther (Hyde) Doolittle. When he was nineteen years of he went to Wyoming County, New York, where he lived until 1845, when he moved to Green County, Wisconsin, and entered government land near Albany, which he improved, living there until 1867, when he came to Hamilton County and bought 160 acres of wild land in Cass Township, which he has improved and now has one of the best farms in the township. He has a good residence and farm buildings, everything about the place indicating the care and thrift of the owner. Mr. Doolittle was married in 1845 to Caroline, daughter of John and Antha Parrey. They have eight children -- Lizzie, wife of S. W. Wade; John, of Cass Township; James, of California; Antha Jennette, wife of George Phelps, of California; Addie, wife of J. M. Dunbar; William W., Carrie, wife of George Smith, and Harry. In politics Mr. Doolittle cases his suffrage with the Republican party. He is an energetic, industrious man and is one of the prosperous and representative citizens of the township. ["Biographical Record and Portrait Album of Hamilton and Wright Counties, Iowa"; Lewis Biographical Publishing Co., 113 Adams Street, Chicago, 1880]
Franklin S. Dunham
One of the extensive farms of township 149, range 67, in eddy county, is owned and ably operated by the subject of this review. Mr. Dunham is one of the pioneer settlers of North Dakota, and has been identified with the farm interests of Eddy county since taking up his residence there, and is now the fortunate possessor of sixteen hundred acres of land, and is successfully conducting diversified farming thereon. He is a man of honest purpose and true citizenship, and is highly esteemed throughout that locality where he is well known and has been associated with the people in various important public offices. Our subject was born in Wyoming county, New York, March 23, 1854. The Dunham family came to America from England about 1808, and the mother's family was also of English descent. The father of our subject, George H. Dunham, was a farmer by occupation and also superintendent of schools of Wyoming county, New York for six years, and during the last twenty years of his life he was engaged in the insurance business, and has made his home at Johnsonsburgh, New York. The mother of our subject bore the maiden name of Louise Virgin, and was born and raised in eastern New York state. Our subject's brother, Fred Dunham, is an attorney at law in Batavia. New York. Franklin S. Dunham was the second in a family of three children and was reared on a farm and given a common-school education, and later attended an academy. After attaining his majority he rented a farm in wester New York state and followed farming thereon eight years, and in 1883 went to North Dakota and entered claim to government land in Eddy county, upon which he erected a claim shanty 16x16 feet. He had a limited start, and had only sod barns, and for the first two years farmed with oxen. His crops were fair but cut too soon, and his wheat shrunk and was almost worthless, but his crop of oats was good. He was elected country treasurer on the Republican ticket in 1892, and the following year removed to New Rockford, and was re-elected in 1894, and in 1896 was elected county auditor, making his public service as a county officer extend over a period of six years. He also conducted his farm while in the city, and in the spring of 1899 returned to the same to reside. He has about one thousand acres of his land under cultivation and has all necessary machinery, and a complete set of good farm buildings, and six acres of cottonwood trees, plenty of good water, and a finely developed farm in every particular, and is known as one of the substantial farmers of the community. Our subject was married in 1876, to Miss Clara North, who was born and raised in Genesee county, New York. Mrs. Dunham is of English descent, and her father, Noah North, was a farmer by occupation. Mrs. Dunham is a lady of excellent education, and was a teacher in her native state at the time of her marriage. Three children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Dunham, as follows: George H., Fred Harrison, and Clara Louise, all of whom were born in Dakota. Mr. Dunham is a member of the Ancient Order of United Workmen and Modern Woodmen of America. Politically he is a Republican, and is a man who stands firm for his convictions. [Source: Compendium of History and Biography of North Dakota, Publ. 1900. Transcribed by Syndi Phillips]
Frank W. Eddy
EDDY, Frank Woodman, merchant and manufacture; born, Warsaw, N. Y., (Wyoming Co) July 29, 1851; son of Rev. Zachary (D. D.) and Malvina R. (Cochran) Eddy; educated at Round Hill School and public schools, Northampton, Mass.; Collegiate and Polytechnic Institute, Brooklyn, N. Y.; Williams College, Williamstown, Mass.; married at Detroit, Sept. 10, 1879, Florence Taylor. Began business career in employ of wholesale hardware firm of Mulford & Sprague, New York City; went to California, 1873, and engaged while there in hardware, newspaper and printing business; came to Detroit, 1875, and since 1876 has been member of firm of H. D. Edwards & Co., rubber goods, mill supplies and ship chandlers. Also president National Can Co.; director Detroit Oak Belting Co., Nelson Baker & Co., Morgan & Wright Rubber Goods Manufacturing Co. (N. Y.), Wayne County Savings Bank, Detroit Trust Co. Republican. Congregationalist. Mason; member Delta Psi. Clubs: Detroit (ex-president), Yondotega, Detroit Athletic (ex-president), Automobile, Country, Detroit Boat, Caledon Mountain Trout, Big Point, Old Club. Recreations: Shooting and fishing. Office: 16-24 Woodward Av. Residence: 32 Stimson Pl. [Source: The Book of Detroiters by Albert Nelson Marquis, 1908 - Sub. by Chris Walters]
William F. Hurd
HURD, William F., president W.F. Hurd Coo., manufacturrers and jobbers of sash, doors and interior finish; born, Warsaw, N.Y., (Wyoming Co) Aug. 26, 1851; son of Franklin D. and Anna (Hosiel) Hurd; educated in public schools of Wyoming Co., N.Y.; married at Buffalo, N.Y., 1867, Miss Johanna Lavey. Has been indentified with manufacture of sash, doors and interior finish ever since the beginning of his active career; came to Detroit, 1877; was connected for a number of years with De Man Bros. and John Pigott & Sons, in Delray and Detroit; organized the W.F. Hurd Co., 1898, and has been at the head of the company since time of organization. Democrat as to politics. Episcopalian in church affiliation. Mason. Recreations: Automobiling, shooting and outdoor exercises. Office: 200 Campbell Av. Residence: 546 Cambell Av. [Source: "The Book of Detroiters". Edited by Albert Nelson Marquis, 1908 - Submitted by Christine Walters]
David S. Jordan
JORDAN, David Starr; first president of Leland Stanford Junior University, was born at Gainesville, N. Y., Jan. 19, 1851, the son of Hiram and Huldah Hawley Jordan, and was brought up on a farm in Wyoming county, in his native state. He entered Cornell University when it opened in 1868, and having devoted himself particularly to the study of botany, he became an instructor in that science at the university in 1870, holding this position until 1872, when he was graduated master of sciences.
During 1872-73 he was professor in Lombard University, a lecturer on botany in Anderson School at Penikese in 1873-74, and in 1875 at the Harvard School of Geology at Cumberland Gap. In 1873 he began the study of fishes under Agassiz, and further pursued his studies in Missouri and Indiana. Raised upon a farm, young Jordan entertained a boy's love for fishes, and tells in his "Science Sketches" how his attention was early called to the fact that two springs, alike in that they were clear and spring-fed, flowing over gravel and clay, contained certain fish that were similar, and that the variety was larger in one stream than in the other. This led him to investigate the cause, and he says: "Since those days I have been a fisherman in many waters; not an angler exactly, but one who fishes for fish, and to whose net nothing large or small ever comes amiss." Dr. Jordan has been a notable fisherman in his way for the U. S. Fish Commission and for the science of ichthyology. In 1876 he explored the waters of Georgia. In 1878 his operations were confined to the waters in the vicinity of Beaufort, N. C. In 1879-8183 he explored the Mediterranean and North Seas, and in 1880 was in Oregon, California, Washington Territory and then southward. In 1882 he made collections in Florida and Texas, and in 1884 in the Florida Keys and the Island of Cuba; the same year explored the rivers of Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas and Texas, and was also in the Adirondack region of New York. In 1886 he was back in Florida, and in 1888 was in Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Indiana and South Carolina. In 1889 Dr. Jordan explored Colorado, Utah and the Yellowstone National Park. He has studied in the museums in Paris, London and Berlin, and has contributed a number of papers to scientific literature. In " Science Sketches" there is an appendix giving titles of 214 of his scientific papers published in fifteen years. These have appeared in the most prominent scientific periodicals. Dr. Jordan's "Manual of the Vertebrates " is in the sixth edition, and "Jordan and Gilbert's Synopsis of the Fishes of North America " is one of the most useful text-books for the angler now published. Dr. Jordan was elected professor of biology in Butler University at Indianapolis in 1875, retaining this position until 1879, when he was elected to a chair in the University of Indiana at Bloomington, of which, in 1885, he became president. From 1879-81 Dr. Jordan was a special agent of the U. S. census for the marine industries of the Pacific coast. In 1891 Dr. Jordan was appointed president of the Leland Stanford Junior University, situated at Palo Alto, Cal., about thirty miles from San Francisco. In 1885 Senator Stanford and his wife decided to erect an institution of learning to the memory of their only son who died in that year. They first gave an endowment of $5,000,000, with the agreement to erect all the necessary buildings and increase the endowment if additional money was needed. As the plans for the institution developed, new ideas presented themselves to Senator Stanford which caused an increased outlay of money, and the donors have added to the original endowment until the sum now aggregates $20,000,000, which places the institution far ahead of any other in this country as far as the endowment goes. The object of the founders is to establish a school for practical training in the trades, arts and sciences, with every facility for the pursuit of classical studies. Senator Stanford has strong views on the subject of the value of a practical education, and the best energies of the management are to be devoted to the education of those who are compelled to make their own way in the world. The institution is provided with schools of agriculture, machine shops, and laboratories for the study of applied science. The general plan of the buildings embraces three large quadrangles, the central one surrounded by an inner series of buildings and an outer; the outer series forming a facade of 1,000 feet in length, in the centre of which is an arch eighty-seven feet in height, of which the piercing is forty-seven feet, which is a memorial arch to Senator Stanford and has a base relief encircling it, illustrative of the progress of civilization from the stone age to the present. South having furnished the plans, and will contain the specimens gathered by young Sanford, who was a great collector for his age. Two quadrangles for lecture and class rooms run east and west from the central building. One-third of a mile from the arch are two dormitories capable of accommodating a large number of students; the one for girls is situated on the west side of the arch and that for boys of the east. The facade of the building is about three quarters of a mile in length. The university buildings are situated in one of the most picturesque sections of California and surrounded by grounds, the beautifying of which is under the direction of Frederick Law Olmstead, the celebrated landscape gardener, who has directions to make them the most beautiful that his cultured taste can devise, the semi-tropical foliage aiding largely to this end. The residences of the professors, to which are to be added cottages that will be rented at a small cost to families desirous of residing near the university while their children are enjoying the educational advantages there afforded, will form an important adjunct to the plans. The boys' dormitory, which at first sight gives the impression of the architecture of the old mission building, is of an entirely original design, though the style is Spanish. It Is built of pale yellow sandstone and looks heavy and low, but this apparent defect is obviated by an outer circle of buildings, a story higher, the long rows of pillars with their foliated capitals, the perfect harmony of the arches and the refined beauty of the ornamental work. In the great court, which is 700 feet square, the centre is of asphalt and the corridors of concrete in two colors. The quadrangle is 586 x 246 feet. In the asphalt court are eight large beds of tropical flowers, in the centre of each of which are fountains. There are fourteen college buildings, most substantially constructed; the walls are thick, the windows eighteen feet high with double transoms, and the roofs of the buildings are of corrugated red Spanish tiles, an exact reproduction of the old roofs which are still seen in the ruined adobe buildings of Santa Barbara and Monterey. In the distance may be seen the Stanford mausoleum, probably the most costly building of its kind in America. Its walls are of pure white granite. The interior is of polished white marble with frescoed ceiling: the architecture is of the severest Grecian style. Provision is made for the reception of three bodies. Over the tomb of Leland Stanford, Jr., are two angels bearing him upward in their arms. The three sarcophagi are of Carrara marble, and the upper slab of each weighs a ton. Situated beyond Menlo Park is Palo Alto in the famous Santa Clara Valley, the Coast range of mountains on one side and the Santa Cruz and Gabilan mountains on the other, and far in the distance the Lick Observatory. On the highest peak of the Gabilan range is the baronial residence of Gov. Stanford. Gleaming through the cedar, spruce and gum trees, above the orchards and vineyards may be seen the red tiled roofs of the buildings of the university, which, even at a distance, are a reminder of the early missionary buildings of California: and only when entering the broad avenue that leads to the central arch can the magnitude of the institution and the beauty of its design and conception, as it bursts upon the vision of the surprised visitor, be appreciated. That part of the work which is devoted to the study of marine life will be carried on at the Seaside Laboratory, established at Pacific Grove, by Timothy Hopkins. It will be open during the summer vacation and its facilities will be at the disposal of persons wishing to carry on original investigations in biology, as well as of students and teachers interested in that line of subjects. The university opened in the fall of 1891 with twice the number of students it was intended to accommodate, and preparations were at once made to enlarge its facilities. The endowment being ample for all possible needs, the question of cost never arises as in less wealthy institutions, and President Jordan has only to consider what is best and how it may be secured. He has gathered about him a corps of professors from all parts of the world, each a specialist in his subject, and with complete laboratories and ample apparatus, instruction will be given under favorable auspices found nowhere else. While the institution was intended chiefly for the benefit of the Pacific slope, and its capacity planned with special reference to the possible number of students from west of the Rocky Mountains, it became at once known throughout the world, and among the first applicants for admission were representatives from every state and territory of the Union, as well as every civilized nation. [Source: The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography, Volume 2; Publ. 1892, by James T. White & Co., N. Y.; Submitted by Andrea S. Pack]
Charles Starkwether Kimberly
Charles S. Kimberly was born as Warsaw, New York, December 23, 1826. His parents were Ebenezer Cary Kimberly, who was born October 9, 1797, at Mansfield, Connecticut, and Corintha Smith Kimberly, born November 12, 1803, at Caledonia, New York. The father came to Michigan as early as 1835, and invested in timber land on the then far western frontier. Four years later he removed permanently from Batavia, New York, and settled in Shiawassee County.
His father, Ebenezer C. Kimberly, "was inseparably linked with the land and timber investments in the county and elsewhere," and was the personal representative in Michigan of Trumbull Cary of Buffalo, New York, managing his extensive timber possessions in which he himself owned a part interest. The duties of this office in the forest wilderness during that formative period were ably performed, and after his death at Corunna July 8, 1856, the responsibilities were assumed in like manner by the son, Charles S. Kimberly. He had come to Michigan before he was twenty years of age, and settled first in Caledonia, Shiawassee County, on the present site of Corunna, where he lived with his parents. An examination of the records of Shiawassee and Saginaw counties show that the interests of both father and son were active and extensive in timber and land transactions.
As early as 1852 Charles S. Kimberly became largely interested in timber land in St. Charles, Brant, Marion and surrounding townships in Saginaw County, although he did not change his residence from Corunna to St. Charles until 1863. The original proprietors of the plat of St. Charles were Charles H. Carroll, William L. P. Little and Charles S. Kimberly; and in 1857, when the survey of the village was made, a meeting was held and the Christian name of Mr. Kimberly was adopted as the name of the village, and it was called St. Charles. The first frame building at this site was erected by Mr. Kimberly, and a few years later he erected a saw mill on the Bad River at St. Charles.
In connection with his timber and lumbering activities, Mr. Kimberly carried on a general merchantile business to supply the needs of the settlers in the new country. The merchandise was purchased, in part, from New York, Buffalo and Saginaw merchants, and had to he shipped from Saginaw in boats until the opening of the Jackson, Lansing & Saginaw Railroad, in 1866. As St. Charles was at the head of navigation of the Bad River, the goods and supplies were then delivered by teams to Corunna, Owosso and neighboring settlements and camps.
In 1868 Mr. Kimberly removed with his mother to Saginaw City, and built a residence at the corner of Court and Granger Streets, of the famous "Michigan Cork Pine," and it is still occupied. His mother died at Saginaw July 13, 1879, in her seventy-sixth year.
On November 1, 1870, he was married at Greenwood, Bradford county, Pennsylvania, to Miss Susan Elise Naglee whom he had met at the home in Saginaw of her sister, Mrs. Benjamin Geer, who came to Michigan from Pennsylvania in 1863. Two children were born to them, Meta Delphine, who was married November 7, 1898, to Harrison Musgrave of Chicago, where they have since lived, and Samuel C. N. Kimberly of this city.
Mr. Charles S. Kimberly died in the prime of life in his forty-ninth year, on December 18, 1875, and in the midst of an industrious and successful career. From his youth his business associates and friends were those of the prominent men of the time, and of his personal friends in Saginaw who are still living may be mentioned Benton Hanchett, Fred H. Potter, Edward W. Morley and John Moore. Educated in the schools of New York State before coming West, Mr. Kimberly started with the earliest pioneers in the section which he located, and imbued with an earnest desire to progress he developed a large and successful business by industry and integrity of character. On June 21, 1881, Mrs. Kimberly was married to Benton Hanchett, to whom was born one daughter, now Mrs. Richard F. Grant, of Cleveland. Mrs. Hanchett died July 27, 1915. [Source: History of Saginaw County Michigan, Vol 2, Publ. 1918. Transcribed by Dana Kraft]
Abram P. Sherrill
SHERRILL, Abram P., wholesale dry goods; born, Pike, Wyoming Co., N.Y., Jan. 19, 1850; son of Abram P. and Elizabeth (Saxton) Sherrill; educated in public schools at Pike and in Pontiac, Mich.; unmarried. Began active career as clerk in bank at Pontiac, continuing, 1869-72; was bookkeeper and credit man for Edson, Moore & Co., 1872-92, and has been member of the firm since 1892. Member Board of Commerce. Republican. Presbyterian. Member Masonic order, Knight Templar. Clubs: Detroit, Fellowcraft, Detroit Boat. Recreations: Outdoor diversions. Office; 194-204 Jefferson Av. Residence: 100 Lafayette Blvd. [Source: "The Book of Detroiters". Edited by Albert Nelson Marquis, 1908 - Submitted by Christine Walters]
Edwin S. Sherrill
SHERRILL, Edwin Stanton, physician; born, Pike, N.Y., (Wyoming Co) Nov. 8, 1854; son of Abram P. and Elizabeth (Saxton) Sherrill; attended public schools of Detroit; B.A., University of Michigan, 1880; M.D., College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, 1885. Republican. Presbyterian. Member Wayne County and Michigan State Medical societies, American Academy of Medicine. Club: Detroit. Recreations: Study and observation of nature. Office: 270 Woodward Av. Residence: The Charlevoix. [Source: "The Book of Detroiters". Edited by Albert Nelson Marquis, 1908 - Submitted by Christine Walters]
George N. Smith
HON. GEORGE N. SMITH, one of the wealthiest and most influential citizens of Cass county, resides on section 17, in Rush River township, and in company with his brother, operates and extensive tract of land. He went to Dakota with limited means, and by dint of energy and perseverance, supplemented by the strictest integrity, he has accumulated a fortune and an enviable reputation. A portrait of Mr. Smith is shown on another page. Our subject was born in Wyoming county, New York, April 1, 1849. When quite young he removed to Kalamazoo county, Michigan, with his parents, in 1854, and settled near Schoolcraft, Michigan, where he was reared to manhood. He was educated at the Kalamazoo Baptist College, later at Parson's Business College in that city, and remained in Kalamazoo county till the spring of 1879, when he went to Dakota and located in Cass county, in what is now Rush River township, where he has since been a resident. He assisted in the organization of the township, and named it. He purchased, in company with his brother, Forrester H. Smith, one section of land, section 17, township 141, range 51. They have steadily increased their acreage, and are now the owners of five sections of land in Cass county, and our subject is also interested in a large tract of land in South Dakota. He and his brother have erected a set of fine farm buildings on the home farm in section 17, and enjoy all the comforts of rural life. In the spring of 1872 they shipped from Michigan twenty-two crs of stock emigrant movables, and at that time sixty-three men, women and children, went to settle in North Dakota with them. The first year our subject and brother with the aid of five men and fifteen head of horses and mules, seeded six hundred acres of wheat and oats, and broke six hundred and forth acers of land, put up seventy-five tons of hay, harvested twelve thousand three hundred bushels of wheat, and five thousand bushels of oats and back-set six hundred and forty acres of prairie. Only during harvest time were more men employed. They have been possessed of untiring energy and a capacity for well-directed labor, that has placed them at the front as agriculturists. George N. Smith was elected to the legislature in the fall of 1890, and served one term, giving very efficient service for his community. He has held many of the township offices in Rush River township and is thoroughly identified with the upbuilding and general welfare of that locality. He is liberal and contributes to the various religious denominations, and no charitable cause worthy of support, or needy person, is refused aid when it is asked. He has gained his fortune steadily and well merits his success. [Source: Compendium of History and Biography of North Dakota, Publ. 1900. Transcribed by Sally Masteller]
Frederick C. Toms
TOMS, Frederick C., cigar manufacturing; born, Attica, N. Y. (Wyoming Co) Apr. 12, 1861; son of John and Sophia (Laborn) Toms; educated in public schools and academy, Attica; married at Detroit, June, 1893, Miss Agnes Ambruster. Began active career by learning cigar making, beginning at Attica, 1877; came to Detroit, 1888, and again, from Rochester, N. Y-, 1902; became connected with the Detroit Cigar Manufacturing Co., 1903, and has been its president since 1905. Democrat. Office: 48-50 E. Congress St. Residence: 343 Brewster St. [Source: "The Book of Detroiters". Edited by Albert Nelson Marquis, 1908 - Submitted by Christine Walters]
